Thursdays Make It All Better
by LeeLeeXtreme
Summary: This is basically a series of oneshots set during New Moon, pre Alice- post Edward. Bella and Jacobs' friendship grows stronger. Might turn AU eventually. Rated M for later chapters.
1. Channel Surfing

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Twilight. No copyright infringement is intended whatsoever.

**Thursdays Make It All Better  
****(1) Channel Surfing**

_**How do you solve a problem like Maria, how do you…**_

"Next!"

_**Buy one and you'll get the 2**__**nd**__** free, just pay shipping and handling…**_

"I want one of those!" Jake shouted.

"Infomercial. Next!"

_**Love means, never having to say you're sorry…**_

"Yeah, right."

"Next!"

_**That is just like you, Harry. You say things like that, and you make it impossible for me to hate you.**_

"Next!"

"Oh, leave this on!" Jake shouted again.

"Huh? I didn't know you were a Meg Ryan fan." I cocked my head to the side and tried not to glare at him.

I was so _not_ in the mood for a Meg Ryan movie. Her characters were notorious for falling madly in love in some quirky, unbelievable way. I felt as if my life was quickly turning into the nightmare version of Sleepless in Seattle- _Restless in Forks_. I didn't even want to think of the word love, let alone watch it in action.

"I'm not, really. She's okay I guess. I just like this movie," he whispered, sliding closer to the end of the couch cushions and gravitating towards the television screen.

"I don't think I've seen it, and I don't care to."

"What? You've never seen When Harry Met Sally?" He turned and gawked at me as if I'd said that I'd never heard of balloons.

"No…?" I replied slowly, daring him to be offended somehow.

"Wow. I mean, it's only one of the best romantic comedies of all time."

"Really, so how come _you've_ actually seen it?" I had Jacob pegged as the action/horror/science fiction kind of guy. Romantic comedies didn't seem up his alley.

"My sisters made me watch it one day. I ended up really liking it."

"Well, I'd rather not-"

"I think you should," he interrupted.

I was starting to get fed up with the whole watching television situation. Ending it all now seemed like the best way out.

"Maybe we should get back to studying instead."

Jacob made it clear that he wasn't pleased by sighing a little too loudly. "Okay, if that's what you want."

"What the hell, Jake. You really want me to watch this movie, this great romantic comedy?" I noticed that my voice came out higher and angrier than I intended and I could tell by his response that he felt defeated by it.

"Not if I have to force you." He looked down dejectedly. "You're such a whack job. You don't even know what it's about and you refuse to give it a chance."

I didn't want to mess up my friendship with Jacob over a stupid movie. He was the only thing I had going for me. Without him in my life I feared I might drift back into the darkness again. I was determined to _not_ let that happen.

"Fine- I give in, what's it about?"

"It's about falling in love," he replied, smiling widely.

"Yeah, I'll pass." Friendship or no friendship, I would go crazy if I had to be subjected to _love_.

"I'm not finished!" he tried.

I could tell he was passionate about this, so I gritted my teeth and decided to let him continue. "Fine, go ahead."

He suddenly looked thoughtful, he peered up into my eyes and I knew that whatever he was going to say was very important to him.

"It's about giving people chances. It's about seeing something in someone that you never saw before in all the years that you knew them. Trusting your friend not to hurt you and break your heart- because deep down you know them so well, that you know they never will."

I was listening to him, but through his words I couldn't help but notice the television screen across from us. The movie was over and the names were coming up.

I was livid.

"All of this and the damn movie is over anyway, nice Jake." I fake punched his arm, but a part of me meant it. He had me running laps in my mind all for nothing.

He turned and looked at the screen. "Wow, it is over. Sorry, I just thought..." he trailed off, searching my face for recognition.

"I know," I started, pleased that I'd avoided the mess and made it out in one piece. "You thought I'd like it. I bet I will, and I bet someday it'll be on again and we'll watch it together. But for now, can we please put on something a little less Meg Ryan and a little more Arnold Schwarzenegger?"

Again that dejected look passed across his features, but it was gone in a moment and replaced with a determined smile. He grabbed the remote and began clicking away.

He stopped on a channel and faced me, appearing pleased with himself.

"How about Sylvester Stallone?"

I heard Eye of the Tiger blare from the television speakers and all felt right in the world.

I would make it through another day.

* * *

**A/N:** While beating my head against the wall trying to finish The Return of Bad Jacob, I decided I needed to start a new, _lighter_ series. Quotes are from a) The Sound of Music, b) Love Story, c) When Harry Met Sally. Feedback is appreciated!


	2. Bang

Thursdays Make It All Better

(2) Bang

_**BANG**_

Almost as quickly as the noise resonated through the house, I was off and running towards the kitchen.

I surveyed the damage. By my account he broke at least ten dishes. _What the fuck?_

"What the hell happened, Jacob?" I wasn't quite screaming. My voice sounded something like the whistle of a steam engine, high and shrill. I stood over a pile of broken glass on my kitchen floor and a stumbling Jacob bent over it.

"I am so sorry!" he answered, seemingly terrified by my initial reaction. He was sweeping the pieces up onto a cardboard pizza box.

"Charlie is going to kill me," I moaned.

"I'm sorry," Jacob repeated.

I could see that he was, in fact, very sorry. His face was twisted up in a pained expression. He reminded me of dog that just got hit with a rolled up newspaper for being bad and peeing on the rug. I think if Jacob had a tail it would have been tucked up between his legs. I wanted desperately to make him feel better, now that the shock was worn off.

"Don't worry, it was an accident. Actually my dad probably won't even notice. He never cooks. Besides, we only ever really use two dishes at once, but goddamnit we better not up and throw a party anytime soon."

I reached down to help him pick up the scattered glass and of course the first piece I touched gashed into my palm. I saw a cut forming in the top layers of my skin. I stared intensely at my hand, waiting for the first drop of blood to come to the surface. There was none. Apparently the glass didn't go deep enough.

I had an instant flashback to _that day_- the paper cut. If only my skin was so cooperative then. If a shard of glass could lightly graze my skin and not do any damage, then why the hell couldn't a little piece of paper do the same? The answer was simple. I was the most unlucky person in the world.

I couldn't dwell on my memory for too long because Jake was now standing next to me, trying to get a glimpse of my palm.

"What happened? Did you cut yourself?"

"Kind of. Not really, it looks okay."

"You don't have to help me clean, it's completely my fault- I'll take care of it."

"I don't mind, really. Two people can get it done much faster than one." I searched for the dust pan and found it next to the fridge. I quickly started gathering pieces and sweeping them up. Then I realized that I never found out what the cause of this mess was.

"So, what the hell _did_ happen in here? I'm a clumsy person myself but I don't think I've ever broken a whole dinette set," I joked to lighten the mood.

"I feel stupid telling you now," Jacob replied, looking down shyly.

"Tell me," I prodded.

"I was trying to get to that vase," he said, pointing up at a clear blue flowery vase in the open cupboard that I recognized immediately. My mother bought it at a yard sale and I think we used it a total of two times before it ended up in the back of the top cabinet to accumulate dust.

"Oh. What for?" I asked, although I pretty much knew what vases were for.

"I picked these wildflowers from this little field near my house," he whispered, reaching over to the table to retrieve a paper bag. He opened it and pulled out a small bunch of purple and yellow flowers. "I thought you would like them, and I wanted to cheer you up after all those trips to the hospital and all the bangs to the head, that I feel are partially my fault for being so reckless with you."

I had another flashback. I could clearly see the meadow Edward took me to, the colorful flowers everywhere. I could almost hear the bubbling stream. The longing ache returned in the pit of my stomach. I was sure Jacob hadn't intended to cause me pain, so I knew I couldn't let it show. It wasn't fair.

"They're beautiful, Jake. Thank you, that was really nice of you."

"Yeah, but I messed it up by breaking all these dishes. I thought for sure I was tall enough to get to that vase."

"You _are_ pretty tall," I exclaimed, shocked that he couldn't reach. I walked over and stood in front of his body to further prove the point, "look."

"Yeah, I'm like a whole foot over you," he laughed, holding the flowers from stem to bud over my head to measure the difference between us. The aroma of the freshly cut flowers traveled down to my nose. I couldn't help but smile at the goofy grin on Jacob's face.

I realized that I kept finding it easier and easier to push past the hurt and memories that seemed to haunt me so often. Jacob was the key. I couldn't hold on to the pain long enough for it to matter with him around -maybe because I didn't want him to see me as zombie Bella. I wanted him to enjoy his time with me.

I lived for the visions of Edward that were somehow granted to me in the face of danger, but that was the crazy part of me. That was the broken down, tattered Bella. While I couldn't make her go away completely- I probably never would- I could stifle her down to the pit of my stomach at will when it was time to be Jacob's friend. I knew how to hold myself together for Jacob, and sometimes, he held me together all on his own.

I abruptly noticed that I was so deep in thought that I was actually standing like a statue in front of Jacob for god knows how long.

I adjusted my eyes and looked into his to see if I'd inadvertently ticked him off by retreating into my head.

Surprisingly his eyes weren't looking back at me, they were looking down. I followed his gaze as best as I could, and came to the conclusion that he was staring at my mouth. I could only pray that he didn't think my silence was a signal for him to kiss me.

I held my stance only a second longer to take in the vision of Jacob, possibly pre-kiss. He was strikingly handsome like this, close and warm and _open_.

Then I knew I had to end this self made stand off.

"So," I smiled for show, incase he was looking, and twisted my head towards the cabinets again. "We're almost done cleaning up. You want to try to ride the bikes again today?"

Jacob quickly recovered from his own dazed state and I could feel his stare turn towards me. "Sure."

I watched him walk away, place the flowers down on the table, scoop up the last few shards of glass and dump them in the trashcan.

"You think you can get to that vase now that those pesky dishes are out of the way?" I asked.

"Hell yeah," he answered cockily. He walked back to the cabinets, did a half jump and snatched up the vase before I could say 'be careful'.

"See, I don't know what happened before," he said, handing me the vase.

I walked to the sink and began to fill it with water. "I don't know. Maybe my unluckiness rubbed off on you."

"I don't think that's it. Most of the time I feel really lucky when I'm around you."

I smiled at him, and he smiled back. As I turned and retrieved the flowers from the table and began strategically placing them in the vase, I smiled even wider.

* * *

A/N: Feedback is always appreciated.


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